iPhones are incredibly popular with kids, especially when compared to Android devices. Indeed, in 2019 83% of American teenagers owned an iPhone. But children face threats when using a smartphone. It’s not just inappropriate content you have to worry about – social media makes cyberbullying and online predators a real danger. Smartphones can also cause screen addiction, which affects a child’s sleep pattern, schoolwork, and mental health. Bearing in mind all these issues, it’s only natural you’ll want to protect your kids when they’re online. After all, you won’t be able to stop them from having a smartphone forever. Fortunately, there are some excellent solutions to help your children stay safe on their iPhone.
The parental control software market is extremely competitive and filled with strong contenders, so it’s eyebrow-raising to see a company describe itself as the “world’s most powerful parental control app”. But that’s exactly what the FamilyTime website states. Headquartered in Japan but predominately based in Pakistan, FamilyTime boasts big but it does have some innovative features to back up its claims. The service offers mobile parental control that monitors children’s activities, controls app use, and implements internet filters. The PickMeUp feature sends the child’s location to the parent and children can also send an SOS alert to their parent’s phone in more urgent situations. Prices for FamilyTime start pretty low, with annual subscriptions for one device equating to just $2.25 per month. Potential FamilyTime customers can briefly test out the service first by taking advantage of the 3-day free trial.
When you’re looking for parental control software it’s reassuring to know that the software is made by experts in the field with vast experience in online security, which is exactly what you’ll get with Kaspersky’s Safe Kids. Kaspersky was founded in Russia back in 1997 and has been in the internet security business ever since, famous for products such as its antivirus software and VPN service. The company gained notoriety in 2017 after allegations of ties to the Russian government, and since then has distanced itself from that and permitted independent reviews of its products – which is reassuring, because they produce some excellent software. Safe Kids is packed with tools to help moderate your child’s internet usage. With each step of setting up your parental controls, you are given expert advice by a professional child psychologist. There’s a free version of Kaspersky Safe Kids available, but it’s limited in its features and scope so it’s better to try the free seven-day trial of the full product to make the most of it.
It’s tough being a parent in the digital age, but you can make your life a little easier by using the right app to keep your child safe online. Qustodio can help, with its intuitive and flexible parental control tools. Founded in the beautiful city of Barcelona in 2012, it has since grown to be one of the most popular parental control software providers on the market – supporting over four million users worldwide. This popularity is due to Qustodio’s unique features, such as advanced social media monitoring, calls and SMS tracking, and smartphone apps with location tracking. In addition to the limited free version that you can use forever, there’s a 3-day free trial for you to try out the premium features. Plus, all subscriptions come with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Eventually, you’ll want to give your kids their own device and if you’ve shared your iPhone with your children before, they’ll pick it up fast. And even if your children have never used an iPad or iPhone before they’ll soon learn.
There are plenty of apps and games out there that are perfect for children, no matter their age. That includes lots of entertaining and informative videos on platforms like Netflix and YouTube that are designed for kids of all ages. Even social media apps can be safer than you think thanks to child-friendly social media networks. So, while there is a lot of content your children should be shielded from, there’s a lot more for them to enjoy.
Apple’s iOS system offers parents various built-in controls that help monitor children’s activity. Age restrictions are particularly useful, and they apply to movies, TV shows, music, and apps. Similarly, web content can be restricted to avoid adult websites, or you can allow kids to access just the websites you select. There are also screen time settings that let you set downtime and give you usage reports.
Forgetting to block in-app purchases can be an expensive mistake. In fact, one 6-year-old managed to spend $16,000 through in-app purchases on his mother’s iPad. Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to block these and save yourself from a very surprising bill.
These settings are all useful, but they’re not perfect. Indeed, a child with some technological skill won’t have any issues getting around the restrictions. They’re also not the easiest things to configure, unlike parental control software, which is built to be as user-friendly as possible.
You don’t need to rely on your iPhone settings to monitor your child’s activity. There are other helpful ways to make sure your kids stay safe. Before anything else, you should sit down with your child to discuss the online dangers they face in an open and honest way. Tell them how to stay safe online, and then you can agree on boundaries based on mutual trust. If you have younger children, it’s a good idea not to leave them unattended – so always make sure you’re supervising them when they’re using their iPhone.
The best way to make sure you know your child is safe on their iPhone is by investing in dedicated parental control software. Using these solutions, you have access to far more features than Apple’s internal tools. Parental control software also generates reports and provides real-time alerts, so you always know exactly what your child is doing without having to look over their shoulder.
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